Kimberly Ann Moore (née Pace; born June 15, 1968) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as chief United States circuit judge of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (in case citations, Fed. Cir. or C.A.F.C.) is one of the 13 United States courts of appeals. It has special appellate jurisdiction over certain categories of cases in the U.S. federa ...

Early life and education

Moore was born in

Halethorpe, Maryland Halethorpe is an unincorporated community in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The community is considered to be a sub-section of Arbutus by the United States Census Bureau. It is bordered by the main portion of Arbutus to the north, Ba ...

. Moore received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

in 1990 and a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

in 1991 from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

. She received her

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

, ''cum laude'', from the

Georgetown University Law Center Georgetown University Law Center is the Law school in the United States, law school of Georgetown University, a Private university, private research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law ...

in 1994.

Career

From 1988 to 1992, Moore was employed in electrical engineering with the

Naval Surface Warfare Center The Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) is part of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) operated by the United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United Sta ...

. She worked in private practice as an associate with the law firm of

Kirkland & Ellis Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1909, Kirkland & Ellis has been the largest law firm in the world by revenue since 2017 and, as of 2025, is the seventh-largest by number ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

from 1994 to 1995, and then clerked for United States Circuit Judge

Glenn L. Archer Jr. Glenn Leroy Archer Jr. (March 21, 1929 – July 27, 2011) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Education and career Born in Densmore, Kansas, Archer moved to Topeka, Kansas where he at ...

from 1995 to 1997. Moore taught at the

Chicago-Kent College of Law The Chicago-Kent College of Law is the law school of the Illinois Institute of Technology, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is the second oldest law school in the state of Illinois (after Northwestern Law). Chicago-Kent wa ...

from 1997 to 1999 and at the

University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (formerly University of Maryland School of Law from 1924 to 2011) is the law school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is located in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1816, it i ...

from 1999 to 2000. She subsequently taught at the

George Mason University School of Law The Antonin Scalia Law School is the law school of George Mason University, Virginia's largest public research university. It is located in Arlington, Virginia, roughly west of Washington, D.C., and east-northeast of George Mason University's ...

as an associate professor from 2000 to 2004 and professor of law from 2004 until her appointment. Prior to her appointment, Moore also served as a mediator for the Federal Circuit Appellate Mediation Pilot Program. She also served as a lecturer for the Barbri Patent Bar Review, a review program for the

USPTO registration examination In order to be registered as a patent agent or patent attorney in the United States, one must pass the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) registration examination, officially called the Examination for Registration to Practice in Pat ...

Federal judicial service

On May 18, 2006, President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

nominated Moore to serve as a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

. She was nominated to fill a seat vacated by Judge Raymond C. Clevenger III, who assumed senior status on February 1, 2006. On September 5, 2006, her nomination was confirmed in the Senate by a 92–0 vote. She received her commission on September 8, 2006. On May 22, 2021, Moore became chief judge, succeeding

Sharon Prost Sharon Prost (born May 24, 1951) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Education Prost was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts. She received a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell Unive ...

. In December 2015, Moore wrote the Federal Circuit opinion in ''

In re Tam ''Matal v. Tam'', 582 U.S. 218 (2017) (previously known as ''Lee v. Tam'') is a Supreme Court of the United States case that affirmed unanimously the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit that the provisions of th ...

'', allowing Asian-American band

The Slants The Slants are an American dance-rock band composed entirely of Asian Americans. The band was formed in Portland, Oregon, by Simon Tam in 2006. The band went through a number of early lineup changes, but had a core lineup for its albums and tou ...

to register their name, and overturning a previous ruling that had upheld the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency in the United States Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark ...

's ability to reject trademarks it deemed offensive or disparaging to others.

Publications

Moore authored ''Patent Litigation and Strategy'' with Federal Circuit Chief Judge Paul Redmond Michel, Raphael V. Lupo (1st and 2nd editions), Professor Timothy R. Holbrook of Emory Law School (3d and 4th editions), and John Frank Murphy (4th ed.). She was also editor-in-chief of the Federal Circuit Bar Journal.

Personal life

Moore has four children with her husband, Matt, who is a partner at

Latham & Watkins Latham & Watkins LLP is an American multinational law firm. Founded in 1934 in Los Angeles, California, Latham is the second-largest law firm in the world by revenue. As of 2022, Latham is also one of the most profitable law firms in the world ...

LLP. Moore is Catholic, and attends the same church as the late Justice

Antonin Scalia Antonin Gregory Scalia (March 11, 1936 – February 13, 2016) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1986 until his death in 2016. He was described as the intellectual an ...

did. She has chambers in the

Howard T. Markey National Courts Building The Howard T. Markey National Courts Building (formerly the National Courts Building) is a courthouse in Washington, D.C., which houses the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. It is located at 717 ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, Kimberly Ann 1968 births Living people 21st-century American women judges American women lawyers Georgetown University Law Center alumni Antonin Scalia Law School faculty Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit People associated with Kirkland & Ellis MIT School of Engineering alumni United States court of appeals judges appointed by George W. Bush